After word leaked from the White House late last week that Chuck Hagel was in line to become the next secretary of defense, Bill Kristol’s Weekly Standard manned the Patriot missile batteries to shoot down that trial balloon.The neoconservative journal, no fan of the iconoclastic former Republican senator, published a smear under the headline: “Senate aide: ‘Send us Hagel and we will make sure every American knows he is an anti-Semite.’ ” In the posting, this anonymous aide went on to accuse Hagel of “the worst kind of anti-Semitism there is.” As evidence, the article included a quotation from Hagel referring to the “Jewish lobby.”Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/12/20/v ... rylink=cpy

Who is Chuck Hagel and Why Is He Being Nominated as Defense Secretary?

By Brian Resnick | National Journal 1/6/13

The Republican whom President Obama is expected to nominate as secretary of Defense on Monday vocally defied his party -- and George W. Bush -- during the lead up to the Iraq war. In 2002, he questioned the evidence that the Iraqis had access to weapons of mass destruction.

Combine that with some disparaging comments about gays in the late 90s (which Hagel recently apologized for), and questions about his support for Israel, and Hagel may face a confirmation battle on many fronts.

Confirmation distractions aside, Hagel list of qualifications is long. Here are the highlight of his biography (compiled directly from the Almanac of American Politics).•Hagel, first elected in 1996 to the Senate, grew up in the Sand Hills and small towns of Nebraska; his father died when he was 16, and Hagel started supporting his family. He dropped out of college, worked as a radio DJ, then with his younger brother Tom volunteered for service in Vietnam. •After the war, he worked his way through the University of Nebraska in Omaha, then got a job in the office of Rep. John McCollister, R-Neb. He rose to administrative assistant; after McCollister lost a Senate race in 1976, Hagel became a lobbyist for Firestone. He later got the Number 2 position in the Reagan Veterans’ Affairs Administration, but resigned after only one year.•Hagel then founded Vanguard Cellular Systems, which became the second largest cell phone company in the nation. •In 1995, when Sen. Jim Exon, R-Neb., announced his retirement, Hagel started running for the Senate, very much the underdog. His platform was solidly conservative. He won 56 percent of the vote.• In the Senate, Hagel sought a seat on Foreign Relations and got it—because no other freshman Republican wanted it. Hagel had a mostly conservative voting record in the Senate. He opposed abortion, favored school prayer, and had taken stands in favor of school vouchers.• Hagel called on his military experience in 1997 to support the treaty against land mines; he spoke for the chemical weapons treaty ratified by the Senate in 1997 over the objections of Foreign Relations Chairman Jesse Helms; he voted against the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty in October 1999 but joined Democrats and the administration in trying to prevent the vote when it became clear the treaty would be rejected. He supported the bombing of Serbia in spring 1999, but decried the Clinton policy of ruling out the use of ground troops.•In February 2002 he accused the Bush administration of a “cavalier approach” to the rest of the world and said that the axis-of-evil part of George W. Bush’s first State of the Union speech was “name calling.” He voted for the Iraq war resolution, but insisted, “Actions in Iraq must come in the context of an American-led, multilateral approach to disarmament, not as the first case for a new American doctrine involving the preemptive use of force.” He wrote that U.S. policy should not be ruled by a sense of “divine mission,” but should inspire allies to work with us on “making a better world.•He supported John McCain for president in the primaries leading up to the 2000 election.•On immigration, in January 2004 he sponsored an immigration bill with then-Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle to let illegal immigrants achieve “earned legalization” on demonstrating four years of work and mastery of the English language; willing workers would be matched with willing employers. •In his 2002 reelection to the Senate, he won 83-15 percent, the most lopsided victory ever in a Nebraska Senate race.•He was mentioned as a possible 2008 presidential candidate, but decided not to run and retired from the Senate.•Since 2008, he has taught at Georgetown University, and sits on the boards of several companies and nonprofits.

Y no olviden:Charles Timothy "Chuck" Hagel (born October 4, 1946) is an American politician and former United States Senator from Nebraska. A recipient of two Purple Hearts from his time as an infantry squad leader in the Vietnam War.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) says that if Hagel is nominated, he wants to see if the former Nebraska senator’s views “make sense for that particular job.”But in May 2007, McConnell headlined two fundraisers for Hagel in downtown Omaha, praising him as “one of the premier foreign policy voices” and as “a man of extraordinary principle” who tells people what he really believes. McConnell lauded Hagel as a “solid, thoughtful, conservative Republican” whose voice is invaluable to the nation, Don Walton of the Nebraska Journal Star reported:The tribute served as a vigorous response to Hagel critics who, as the Senate GOP leader phrased it, say that “somehow (Hagel) is not much of a Republican.”….Hagel is “an indispensable member of the Republican team,” McConnell said. McConnell also “described Hagel as ‘a man of extraordinary principle’ who tells people what he really believes.“It’s not spin,” he said. “It’s not calculated.” Hagel, he said, is “one of the premier foreign policy voices (and) one of the giants in the United States Senate.”During an interview after the fundraiser, McConnell stated that many of Hagel’s warnings about the Iraq war had been vindicated: “Many of the predictions Chuck Hagel made about the war came true,” the Kentucky senator said in a brief interview after his remarks at a fundraising reception. “They have proven to be accurate.”Hagel’s views on the war “have not diminished his effectiveness,” McConnell said, and may, in fact, increase his effectiveness over time.Walton explained that “Hagel warned against a U.S. attack against Iraq without broad international support and careful planning for the aftermath. Most recently, he has opposed President Bush’s increase in U.S. troops while supporting changes in the U.S. military mission and gradual withdrawal of most combat troops.”Hagel ultimately decided not to run in 2008. Josh Rogin of Foreign Policy points out that Hagel’s Republican colleagues had only good things to say about him as they bade him farewell when he retired from the Senate, including McConnell:“In two terms in the Senate, Chuck has earned the respect of his colleagues and risen to national prominence as a clear voice on foreign policy and national security,” said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). “He has consistently fought to expand free trade. Chuck’s stature as a leading voice in foreign affairs has earned him a reputation, in just 12 years in the Senate, as one of Nebraska’s great statesmen. This is a tribute to his intelligence, hard work, and devotion to a country that he has served his entire adult life.”

Rogin identifies other Republican senators who were for Chuck Hagel before they were against him, including John McCain, Jon Kyl and Lamar Alexander:“When Senator Hagel came to the Senate, his actions often reflected his experience as a combat veteran. He did what he believed was best for the men and women in uniform, and he defended his positions forcefully,” said Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-AZ). ”Senator Hagel has continued to protect and defend the country, notably through his work on the Foreign Relations and Intelligence Committees. He had strong opinions, and he was never shy about letting them be known.”“Senator Hagel’s heroism and service serving side by side with his brother in Vietnam is one of the most fascinating, heroic stories of any member of the Senate,” said Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN). “With that sort of independent background, you can imagine he brought to this body a sense of independence, a great knowledge of the world… [H]e understands the world better than almost anyone, and he works hard at it. He has been independent in his views, willing to criticize those he thought were wrong, including those in his own party. … We will miss Senator Hagel.” “Hagel and his former GOP colleagues may have differed strongly on some issues, but there was no disputing his deep credibility on matters of foreign policy or national security,” one former Hagel staffer said. “These recent attacks amount to a mix of revisionist history and political gamesmanship, not a substantive examination of his record. And I think most of his former colleagues know that. This whole dynamic is a product of the trial-balloon method; it will change dramatically if he is actually the nominee.” Marsha B. Cohen

While American pro-Israel groups sound the alarm on President Obama's choice of Chuck Hagel for secretary of Defense, Israel itself seems much less concerned.“It’s none of our business, it’s America’s prerogative,” said Naftali Bennett of the right-wing HaBayit HaYehudi (The Jewish Home) party, whose popularity has surged in recent weeks. “Israel and America’s bond goes way beyond certain relationships between individuals.”Mr. Bennett's shrug comes despite the fact that Hagel’s record diverges sharply from Bennett’s views on Iran, which he identifies as the most pressing foreign policy issue facing Israel. While representing Nebraska in the Senate, Hagel voted repeatedly against US sanctions on Iran and has expressed opposition to a military strike on Iran – a country seen by some Israelis as an existential threat to the Jewish nation.The Christian Science Monitor 1/8/13